SANTA CATERINA VALFURVA, Italy — The U.S. women's ski team seems to be in top form with the world championships less than a month away.

Kristina Koznick of Eagan, Minn., finished second in yesterday's slalom to cap a strong effort by the Americans, who produced top-five finishes in each of four World Cup races on the same course to be used for the worlds.

"The momentum is really good going into the world championships," Koznick said. "I was (winning) alone for so long for the U.S."

Koznick was runner-up to Austria's Marlies Schild.

The competition had other highlights for the U.S. squad in previous days: Lindsey Kildow of Vail, Colo., who leads the downhill standings, finished second and fourth in two downhills, and Julia Mancuso of Olympic Valley, Calif., came in fourth in the giant slalom.

The worlds will be at Santa Caterina from Jan. 28 to Feb. 13. The men will race in nearby Bormio, where the Americans also figure to be in good shape. Bode Miller of Franconia, N.H., leads the World Cup overall standings and Daron Rahlves of Sugar Bowl, Calif., is in fifth place.

Koznick led after the first run yesterday. She was 0.15 seconds behind Schild's two-run combined time of 1 minute, 29.96 seconds.

Koznick, who works separately from the rest of the U.S. team with a personal coach, senses greater depth on the squad.

"There was a gap between when Hilary (Lindh) and Picabo (Street) were dominating and then there was kind of just me for a while," she said. "So it's really nice to watch any discipline and know that Americans can be in there."

Italy's Rocca triumphs

CHAMONIX, France — Italy's Giorgio Rocca won his second straight slalom, easily capturing a race in which Miller failed to finish the first leg.

Rocca, the slalom winner in Flachau, Austria, before the holiday break, had two solid runs and took the lead in the World Cup slalom standings.

He had a combined time of 1 minute, 28.15 seconds — 1.33 seconds ahead of runner-up Benjamin Raich of Austria.

Ted Ligety of Park City, Utah, was 15th. Tom Rothrock of Cashmere placed 29th.

Davis sets records on ice

SALT LAKE CITY — Shani Davis of Chicago set two speedskating world records at the North America & Oceania long-track qualifying meet for the World All-Around Championships.

Davis covered 1,500 meters in a record 1 minute, 43.33 seconds, surpassing the world mark of 1:43.95 set by teammate Derek Parra in 2002.

Davis also set the mark for overall points with 149.359, bettering the record of 150.478 set by American Chad Hedrick last year.

KC Boutiette of Tacoma was second to Davis in the 10,000 meters and finished second to Davis in points with 152.674.

Boutiette is eligible for a berth at the worlds, which start Feb. 4 in Moscow. The U.S. long-track committee will select the skaters for the team.

Other events

• Jochem Uytdehaage of the Netherlands took the men's title and Anni Friesinger of Germany won the women's title at the European Speedskating Championships, a long-track competition in Heerenveen, Netherlands.

• Ryan St. Onge of Fraser, Colo., led the U.S. men to a World Cup aerials victory in Mont-Tremblant, Quebec, the second straight day Americans swept the medals at the freestyle meet. Jeret Peterson of Boise, Idaho, was second. Joe Pack of Park City, Utah, finished third.

Australia's Lydia Ierodiaconou was the women's winner.

• Finland's Janne Ahonen went a hill-record 152 meters in Willingen, Germany, to win for the 11th time in 13 World Cup ski-jumping events this season.

• France's Raphael Poiree won the 12.5-kilometer pursuit at a World Cup biathlon event in Oberhof, Germany, and donated his $11,800 in prize money to tsunami-relief efforts in South Asia. He leads the men's standings. Germany's Uschi Disl captured the women's 10-kilometer pursuit.

• Jukka Eratuli and Juuso Laivisto of Finland finished 1-2 in a Snowboard World Cup Big Air event in Moscow.

• Olympic gold medalist Ross Powers of Stratton, Vt., won the halfpipe event Saturday at the U.S. Snowboard Grand Prix at Mount Bachelor in Oregon. Lindsey Jacobellis, also of Stratton, won the women's halfpipe.